Suuret suomalaiset

Suuret suomalaiset

Suuret suomalaiset (Great Finns) was a 2004 television show broadcast in Finland by YLE (the Finnish Broadcasting Company), which determined the 100 greatest Finns of all time according to the opinions of its viewers. The viewers were able to vote during a programme which lasted from October to December 2004. The show was a Finnish spin-off of the BBC's programme Great Britons.

Humoristic voting and speculation on manipulated results

Everybody in the top ten can be regarded as "serious" candidates, but right after those first ten are a number of candidates that have probably been selected in a more humorous sense. Positions 11-14 are held by:

Position 11, Matti Nykänen – A four-time Olympic gold medalist who is also known for his later ill-fated careers as a singer and a stripper. He is a person loved deeply by the Finnish sensationalist press. Most of his scandals are caused by his aggressive behavior while drunk.

Position 12, Väinö Myllyrinne – The tallest Finnish person ever. In the Finnish language, the words "great", "tall" and "big" can all be expressed with the word "suuri", which is used in the name of the program. Thus, voting for Myllyrinne was a kind of joke. Some people circulated messages on the Internet that urged people to vote for Myllyrinne.

Position 14, Lalli – A mythical and possibly non-historical figure who, according to a medieval legend, killed the Swedish Bishop Henry in Finland in 1156.

After the results were published, lots of speculation started on the issue of whether YLE had manipulated the results in order to keep humoristic candidates out of the top ten. YLE has condemned the accusations but has refused to publish the number of votes that candidates below top ten received.

The person most conspicuously not appearing on the list is the international diplomat and former President of Finland Martti Ahtisaari, who is a perennial favourite in Finland for the Nobel Peace Prize.